Summary#

Calgary City Council adopted Councillor Johnston’s notice of motion, as amended. It rescinded a 2021 Council direction about an endorsement statement for public hearing registration, directed City staff to remove the mandatory statement and checkbox within 30 days, and also directed staff to update the statement’s wording.

• The updated wording says people taking part in Council and committee proceedings are expected to act respectfully and not make discriminatory, abusive or harassing comments or conduct.
• Council passed the motion to rescind the 2021 direction and remove the mandatory statement and checkbox by a vote of 7 to 6. Councillors Yule, Clark, Dhaliwal, Atkinson, Kelly and Schmidt voted against.
• Council separately directed staff to update the statement; that motion passed 10 to 3.

What it means for you#

• People registering for public hearings: City staff must remove the mandatory endorsement statement and checkbox from the Public Submission form and all public hearing registration processes within 30 days.
• People taking part in Council or committee proceedings: The statement is to be updated to set out expectations for respectful participation. The decision does not specify a penalty or how those expectations will be enforced.
• City staff: They must carry out the removal and wording update. The decision does not create a new organization or a new process for deciding who may speak.

Money#

No cost estimate is provided.

• The decision requires City staff to make changes, but no staffing level or cost is stated.
• No publicly available information on any other cost.

What is unclear#

• The decision both removes the mandatory statement and directs staff to update the current statement. It does not explain where the updated wording will appear or whether people will still be asked to acknowledge it.
• It does not set out how the expectations in the updated statement will be enforced.
• No publicly available information on a timeline for the wording update; the 30-day deadline applies to removing the mandatory statement and checkbox.

Case for#

• The notice says City staff’s legal review warned that requiring people to endorse the statement could amount to government-compelled expression and could discourage public participation. It also said the benefits did not outweigh the risk of infringing participation rights.
• The notice reports that members of the public had raised concerns that the requirement created an unnecessary barrier to taking part in public hearings.
• Removing the requirement while stating expectations for respectful conduct could be seen as preserving open registration while setting out how participants are expected to treat one another.

Case against#

• The 2021 direction sought a more user-friendly and inclusive public hearing process, including a statement of the City’s commitment to anti-racism, equity, diversity and inclusion. Rescinding that direction removes that specific requirement.
• The decision does not explain how the updated statement will work alongside removal of the mandatory statement and checkbox.
• Six councillors voted against rescinding the 2021 direction and removing the requirement. The minutes do not give their reasons.